J.C. Higgins Model 60

About the J.C. Higgins Model 60

The J.C. Higgins Model 60 is a gas-operated semi-automatic shotgun manufactured by High Standard and sold through Sears, Roebuck and Company under the store's J.C. Higgins house brand. Introduced in 1953 and chambered for 12 gauge 2-3/4-inch shells, it was among the first commercially successful gas-operated autoloading shotguns available to American hunters, using an adjustable gas relief valve to soften recoil across a range of loads. It fed from a tubular magazine and was typically fitted with an adjustable choke. High Standard offered it in Field, Deluxe, and Presentation grades before it was superseded by the Model 66 around 1956.

J.C. Higgins was a house brand of Sears, Roebuck and Company named after a real Sears accountant, John Higgins. High Standard built the Model 60 exclusively for Sears, and its gas-operated design was widely regarded as one of the lightest-kicking autoloaders of its era.

J.C. Higgins Model 60 specifications

A rebranded, Sears-marketed version of the High Standard Supermatic shotgun family. Early Model 60 guns used a coiled recoil spring where later Model 66 and Supermatic guns used wavy washers, though the gas-operating principle was the same.